Nic is left in the care of her grandfather at the remote family property that was once her mother’s childhood home; a place with thirty rooms, three dogs and no mobile reception.

Left to her own devices, she searches for clues about her mother – who died the day Nic was born. But when Nic learns how to slip through time, she discovers more than she could have imagined. The past holds a dark and shocking secret that haunts the land and the people who live there.

Inheritance by Carole Wilkinson is a historical fiction novel perfect for Australian readers aged approximately 10-12.

This book is not at all what I thought it was going to be, judging by the blurb above. Yes, it’s a novel about time travel. But it’s so much more than that. It’s about massacre and racism and understanding the mistakes of the past.

Inheritance sheds light on the shameful events in Australian history. This book would make a good classroom discussion for primary school children, using it to launch conversations around the history of Australia and the treatment of aboriginals by white people.

“My eyes were still adjusting to the sudden change from absolute darkness to brilliant daylight. In the distance, among all the yellow, I could see dark out-of-focus shapes. I blinked. One of the shapes changed. I heard a sound. It took me a while to realise it was a voice. The other shapes changed, becoming taller and thinner. They were people. Women.”

Teenager Nic Gervase lives in the present-day timeline and lives in regional Victoria. Her fathers on a cruise ship and has left her to live with her maternal grandfather. She stumbles upon a way to travel back in time, and discovers the shocking truth about what life was like back then.

Inheritance confronts the massacre of the local Gulidjan people in 1839. At times, the content in the book is a little shocking but it’s based on true events and it’s important for young readers to know the history of Australia.

“The men stared at me with curiosity, not fear. One of them spoke. The sounds made no sense to me. I couldn’t even recognise them as words. He seemed to be talking to the women. Then the men turned and ran off, their spears held high.”

At times, the vocabulary, sentence structure and prose felt a little too young for the audience but the concept of time travel is so interesting that I think it will entice and engage young readers’ minds.

I recommend this to young readers intrigued by historical fiction and Australian history.

Thank you to the publisher for mailing me a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

The whales of Bathsheba’s pod live for the hunt. Led by the formidable Captain Alexandra, they fight a never-ending war against men. Then the whales attack a man ship, and instead of easy prey they find the trail of a myth, a monster, perhaps the devil himself…

With their relentless Captain leading the chase, they embark on the final hunt, one that will forever change the worlds of whales and men. From Patrick Ness, the multi-award-winning author of A Monster Calls, and CBCA Crichton Award-winning Australian artist Rovina Cai comes a haunting tale of power and obsession that turns the story of Moby Dick upside down.

And the Ocean was Our Sky is a powerful, moving tale by bestselling author Patrick Ness. Accompanied by gorgeous illustrations from Rovina Cai, Patrick’s story is from the point of view of a whale — Bathsheba. This story is a unique twist on the classic novel, Moby Dick.

War between humans and whales has been going for generations, each hunting the other. This book illustrates the trauma and death associated with war, and the reader comes to sympathise for Bathsheba. She is the third apprentice in a hunting pod to Captain Alexandra; they spend their days searching and destroying ships and humans. Bathsheba feels conflicted about their task, and struggles to understand the necessity of this war against humans.

“Let me be clear, right from the start. I hate the hunt but I loved it then. Now, of course, after all the occurred, after all are dead, after I waited for a rescue that might never come, no one would blame me for hating it.”

The book tells the story of the hunt for Toby Wick — an enemy so evil that no whale has ever met them and survived. Captain Alexandra is desperate to find and kill Toby Wick.

The illustrations are gorgeous. They mostly follow a soft use of the colours black, grey, white and red and they capture the mood of the story perfectly. Rovina is so talented and has done an exceptional job bringing this story to life.

As the hunting pod closes in on Toby, Bathsheba wrestles with his doubts and concerns. How necessary is this war? Is it worth all this death? As the reader, we know that this hunt will likely kill almost every character because Bathsheba hints at it right at the beginning of the book.

“Call me Bathsheba. It is not my name, but the name I use for this story. A name, I hoped, that would be free of prophecy, free of the burden of a future placed upon it, free of any destiny that would tear it from my hands and destroy worlds.”

Set in the depths of the ocean, this is a stunning, brilliant work. The prose is effortless and each sentence beautiful. I did find the first person narration confusing at first, and it did take me a short while to understand the dynamic and structure of the story, but apart from that I was completely absorbed in this story and it’s artwork.

And the Ocean Was Our Sky explores themes of loyalty, friendship, family, war and revenge.

Thank you to the publisher for mailing me a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Like this:

The story of a cicada who works in an office, and all the people who don’t appreciate him. The new picture book from multi-award-winner Shaun Tan, author of The Arrival, The Lost Thing and Rules of Summer.

A story for anyone who has ever felt unappreciated, overlooked or overworked, from Australia’s most acclaimed picture book creator.

Cicada by Shaun Tan is an absolutely beautiful picture book about an unappreciated office worker who is bullied by his coworkers and treated terribly by his bosses. He’s a hard worker — diligent and competent.

The little cicada is a data clerk and his colleagues are humans. He’s not allowed to use the office bathroom and he has to sleep in the office wallspace.

Like this:

Enter an immersive world where the chosen few have the ability to summon demons …

Arcturus is just an orphaned stable boy when he discovers he has the ability to summon demons from another world. He is sent to Vocans Academy where the lost arts of summoning, spell craft and demonology are taught to the noble children of the Empire.

As the first commoner gifted with this ability, his discovery challenges the nobility and the powers that be and Arcturus soon makes enemies. With no one but his demon Sacharissa by his side, Arcturus must prove himself as a worthy Summoner …

The Outcast by Taran Matharu is the prequel novel to the bestselling children’s fantasy series, Summoner. It’s about young kids who have the rare gift of being able to summon demons from another world.

This novel is most enjoyable, taking the reader on a fun, adventurous journey full of orcs, dwarves, demons and magic. Whilst the characterisation is pretty weak — the characters are not really relatable and their motivations seem very stereotypical — the pacing is great. Each chapter ends on a note that wants you to keep reading, and the book definitely drew comparisons to the Harry Potter series.

‘Prince Harold, why do you think your father has sent me away?’
‘Lord Forsyth, the reasons are threefold. The first is that in the last dwarven rebellion, the noble families suffered several deaths, and this could happen again if the ongoing altercations with the orcs become any worse. With commoners to swell our ranks, we will be able to take fewer risks, giving the more dangerous missions to them.”

At its core, the novel explores racism and prejudice. Everyone is so surprised that a commoner has the ability to summon a demon, but they treat Arcturus terribly and two students even try to kill him. However, over the course of the novel, Arcturus learns to trust other students and he forms strong friendships with a few other kids in the academy.

The novel is subject to quite a few significant flaws. It’s unrealistic how Arcturus is privy to so much sensitive information, even from the the beginning of the book. This is noticeable in most scenes where Obadiah is present — a powerful man like that wouldn’t tell him as much as he does, and he wouldn’t have his students discussing and understanding all of the political knowledge of the land and school. It feels a lot like an info dump to the reader.

“Now he could see the animals, like the deer of the north but with twisting horns and a ribbon of black separating their white-furred bellies and the sandy coat above. They were strange creatures to be sure, and he had no idea what they were.”

Arcturus actually spends very little time at the academy learning how to control demons and magic. He’s there for a very short time before he’s out in battle trying to stay alive. Realistically, he should be terrible. He’s a novice. But somehow he seems really experienced? This is very unrealistic.

The ending of the novel is also unrealistic. It ends too abruptly. This prequel storyline is too complex to be captured in a four-hundred page novel. The pacing may be good, but Taran has squished too much information and history and plot into this novel.

“Arcturus fell to his knees, the pain of Sacharissa’s injury flaring like lightning across his brain. He could barely see through the agony, only feel the tremors of the Phantaur’s approaching steps.”

Younger children will love this, but adult readers aren’t the target audience. This is not a crossover fantasy series, so I’d recommend this to young eyes, and to parents/family looking to buy a gift for a younger reader. The Outcast is a prequel, so no prior knowledge of the series is required. I haven’t read any of this series and I followed along just fine.

Thank you to the publisher for mailing me a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

When Ruby’s dad uproots her from Australia to set up a hotel in the mountains of India, Ruby is devastated. Not only are they living in a run-down building in the middle of the wilderness surrounded by scorpions, bears and leopards, but Ruby is sure that India will never truly feel like home – not without her mum there.

Ever since her mum died, Ruby has been afraid. Of cars. Of the dark. Of going to sleep and never waking up.

But then the last remaining leopards of the mountain are threatened and everything changes. Ruby vows to do all she can to protect them – if she can only overcome her fears…

When the Mountains Roared is Jess Butterworth’s second middle-grade novel, following on from Running on the Roof of the World. It’s a vivid, warm and atmospheric adventure set in the mountains of India.

Jess Butterworth is really skilled at capturing setting — I could feel the warmth of that blazing sun and the silence of the mountains. I could sense the seclusion and the danger that lurked. The language is descriptive and engaging, simple enough for young children to understand but detailed enough so that readers of all ages will be lured into this story.

“The mountain is covered in pieces of shiny grey slate. The same slate the roofs in the village are made of. I climb down and with a chalky stone I write a message to Praveen on some slate, before propping it against a branch in the tree.”

Ruby is a determined, courageous young girl, not afraid to face danger to save the defenceless. She does have more spine and more confidence than her father, who actually felt like a really weak, naive character.

He felt a little underdeveloped — a cardboard cut out of a character. He disregarded his daughter and while he cared for her, he didn’t come across as a very smart man. I think the reader is supposed to sympathise for him, but really I just pitied him and disregarded his character altogether.

“I see that his face is now drawn and worried. And I realise that’s the problem. I don’t trust him. No matter how hard I try, after everything that happened in Australia with the moneylenders, there’s still a part of me that doesn’t. A big part.”

When the Mountains Roared explores hope, courage and family. It also illustrates the importance of identity and the discovery of one’s place in the world.

Jess has blended so many different emotions into Ruby’s characterisation — grief, loss and wonder. Ruby is forced to navigate this new life, whilst also learning how to let go of her old life. She has to understand that she can enjoy life without her mother being in it, and even though life will never be the same again, that doesn’t mean it won’t be enjoyable and full of wondrous experiences.

Any children who have experienced loss will really relate to Ruby.

“My stomach twinges as I recognise the buildings and criss-crossing roads outside.
Perth.
It was where we had Mum’s funeral.
She died on a Friday, the same day the roses bloomed. She’d been watching and waiting for them to open every day.”

Jess Butterworth has crafted a fast-paced, entertaining story for children, set within the beautiful Himalayan mountains.

When the Mountains Roared teaches young readers about Tibetan and Indian culture. It also educates readers on animal protection and poaching, but that education feels like osmosis. Jess isn’t beating readers over the head with information, but rather, allowing children to learn the culture and the importance of animal protection slowly as the plot develops. This is fantastic for a children’s novel, because the last thing kids want is to feel like they’re *learning* when reading a fictional novel.

This is a really great book for middle-grade readers, and I actually think it’s a lot stronger than her debut. The characters are more evocative and three-dimensional, and the story is much richer and much more pacy. Young readers will love this story. Animal lovers will devour it.

Thank you to the publisher for mailing me a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

When the Mountains Roared
Jesse Butterworth
April 2018
Hachette Book Publishers